Humanism in Poland

Anna Kanik, a member of the Association for Humanism and Independent Ethics in Poland, discusses the situation of humanism in Poland with the Editor recently.

The main humanist organisation in Poland is the Association for Humanism and Independent Ethics which has about 200 members, mainly in Warsaw. However, there are a number of small groups in different towns. It was started in 1991 with the aim of creating a secular state, defending freedom of speech and thought, and popularising ethics independent of religion.

One of the main problems is that the atheism is seen as synonymous with the now discredited communism. Another is the long-standing Catholic tradition, which has been much strengthened by a Polish Pope. Catholicism, suggested Anna Kanik, is less of a thought out system of beliefs and more of a tradition, a habit of mind.

In communist times church rooms were one of the few places where dissidents could meet and publish underground material. Many of these people were not Catholics, but the Catholic Church did not inquire into their beliefs. Now the Catholic Church claims that it has brought about the liberation of Poland. And it has steadily increased in power ever since.

The Catholic Church has shown great political skill. Some MPs have been intimidated by priests and bishops. The Church pays little tax and thus has the wealth to publish books on science and ethics from a Catholic point of view. During Sunday services the clergy read out a letter from the Archbishop, which has a political and social agenda. In the 1993 elections for parliament, the Catholic was aware of its unpopularity and kept a low profile. Once the election was over it began to influence the Peasant Party and other political parties.

The issues of abortion, divorce and religious education cause conflict between the humanists and the Catholic Church. Because of the prohibition on most abortion, women travel to Russia (where conditions can be poor) and the Czech Republic for a termination. Clergy describe abortion as murder in the churches. In schools religious education lessons have included lurid details of abortion so frightening that girls have fainted.

In 1991, a law enforcing religious education was slipped into parliament rapidly before there was time to mount opposition. It often consists of a twice weekly catechism. There is the possibility to opt out and take part in ethical education, but young people worry that this will not give them the full certification they need for further education.

There has been considerable discussion of a Concordat between Rome and Poland. Such an agreement would almost certainly mean that divorce would be made much more difficult. A large part of the population is not religious, but they suffer religion in school and on the media. The population has been trained to censor itself for over fifty years, and the habit remains once the oppressor is the Catholic Church.

Despite the problems, there is a growing humanist movement in Poland. Distinguished humanists such as Tadeusz Kotarbinski, a philosopher, Szulkin, a film-maker, Olga Lipinska, a theatre director and other scientists, physicians, politicians and artists are prepared to support the humanist movement. Anna Kanik hopes that it may become a powerful voice inPoland.